


Trials and Happiness

by AnnaOnTheMoon



Series: The Stargazer [3]
Category: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Genre: Abuse, F/M, Philippa Louvois, Sexual Harassment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-21
Updated: 2017-11-21
Packaged: 2019-02-04 22:08:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12780588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnnaOnTheMoon/pseuds/AnnaOnTheMoon
Summary: Beverly and Jean-Luc get called to Earth to testify against Jack





	Trials and Happiness

**Author's Note:**

> Warnings for sexual harassment discussion and abuse discussion.

Third year Medical student, Ensign Beverly Howard was sprawled on one of the comfortable couches  in the back of the Captain’s Yacht with her jacket unbuttoned, waiting for her boyfriend, Captain Jean-Luc Picard, to join her once he had engaged the automatic helm control.  They were headed to Earth. Not for a romantic getaway like Jean-Luc had wanted to celebrate her end of year evaluation, but to attend the court marshall trial of Beverly’s ex boyfriend, and Jean-Luc’s former Second Officer, Lieutenant Commander Jack Crusher.

Jack had been temporarily serving on board the _Farragut_ with a chance of becoming First Officer when he was dismissed by the Captain of that ship for his conduct.  More specifically, for him exposing himself and propositioning most of the female junior staff.  Beverly had broken up with him shortly before he left the _Stargazer_ , and he apparently reverted to his old playboy ways. 

Two months after Beverly had broken up with Jack, she began dating her best friend and Captain of the _Stargazer_ , Jean-Luc Picard.  When Jack returned to the _Stargazer_ , he had somehow got it in his head that Beverly would reconcile with him, and when he found out she was dating Jean-Luc, Jack had reacted by punching Jean-Luc...his superior officer.  Jean-Luc had had no choice but to throw Jack in the brig and notify Starfleet.  Now, six months later, Jack was going to stand trial for both his assault on Jean-Luc and his sexual harassment of the women of the _Farragut_.  Beverly and Jean-Luc had both been sent requests to attend as witnesses. 

Beverly was still a student, and had been assigned to the _Stargazer_ as part of a work-study program at the request of Jean-Luc back when Beverly and Jack had still been dating.  She only hoped that the revelation that she and Jean-Luc were now dating wouldn’t affect her placement on the _Stargazer_ as they had deliberately chosen to keep their relationship hidden from the brass.  While they were waiting for the trial to begin, Beverly would be keeping up with her work-study program through Starfleet Medical with a temporary assignment to the hospital.  Likewise,  Jean-Luc had been temporarily relieved of duty of the _Stargazer_ , leaving it in the capable hands of his First Officer, Gilaad Ben Zoma, and was assigned an office at command.  Fortunately, Jean-Luc still maintained a small apartment near command, though he had warned Beverly it was quite sparse. 

Jean-Luc appeared, sans jacket,  and tossed himself down on the sofa next to Beverly, lifting her legs and placing them on his lap before he unzipped the tall boots that went along with her skirted uniform and tossed them to one side.  He peeled off the small pair of socks Beverly wore to cushion her boots and began rubbing slow circles on her feet.  Beverly closed her eyes. “Mmm, that feel really good.” 

“I know these last few months have probably been more stressful for you than they have for me.  Between studying, working, having your second year evaluation, dating me, and now all this...you deserve for me to lavish as much attention on you as I possibly can.  We won’t even get close to Earth for five days, and I intend on spending most of that time on you.”  He lifted a foot up to his mouth and tenderly kissed it, causing Beverly to shiver.  “Lavish away, my Captain.”   

Jean-Luc kissed every toe and just about every inch of her feet before he moved on to her ankles, calves, and knees.  He kissed her thighs and was only stopped by the edge of her skirt, so he slowly unzipped it and tugged it off her.  He glanced up at her face.  Beverly had her eyes closed and her mouth slightly open. Every once in a while she would let out a small whimper or moan, and occasionally a giggle if Jean-Luc found an overly sensitive spot.  He kissed his way up each thigh and gently nosed at her center through her knickers.  Beverly gasped and her hips jumped.  Jean-Luc placed a wet kiss over her knickers and grasped the waistband with his teeth.  He let out a small grunt to get her attention and she opened her eyes and glanced down at him and laughed as she watched him tug her knickers off with his teeth.  When he pulled them down as far as her knees, she helped him by kicking them off the whole way. 

When Jean-Luc settled between her legs and touched her with his tongue, stars exploded behind Beverly’s eyes.  She reached her hands down and ran her hands over the smooth bald spot on the top of his head before twirling her fingers in his soft, short hair.  He added a few fingers to aid his tongue and when his thumb brushed over her sensitive nub, Beverly came undone, calling his name out over and over as she rose to new heights.  She bucked her hips against his face and wanted nothing more than for him to take off his clothing and make love to her, but Jean-Luc wasn’t done lavishing attention on her, yet. 

He pushed her jacket off her shoulders and tugged off her singlet, sending it flying.  He slowly kissed his way over her abdomen and dipped a tongue into her belly button, swirling it around and causing her to giggle.  He kissed up her ribcage and slowly licked along the bottom edge of her bra, setting her on edge.  Beverly couldn’t take it anymore and she reached behind and unhooked her bra.  Jean-Luc chuckled at her eagerness but took first one nipple, and then the other in his mouth, taking it in turn to lick and suck her nipples into hard peaks.

Meanwhile, Beverly was putting her hands to good use and was busy unbelting and shoving Jean-Luc’s trousers down his legs along with his shorts. When she couldn’t reach any farther, she started using her feet to tug his trousers the whole way off.  When his stiff member sprung free, she licked her lips and wrapped a delicate hand around him and started to guide him into her.  “Please, Jean-Luc?”

“Anything for you my love, anything.”  His lips met hers and she could taste the lingering taste of her own juices on his tongue as he thrust into her and they became one. 

###

Beverly had woken up alone in the bedroom on board the _Calypso_ , so she padded out into the main area naked and started to laugh.  There, seated in the Captain’s chair, was Jean-Luc – stark naked.  Jean-Luc swivelled in the chair when he heard Beverly’s laughter and beckoned her to come join him.  As she lowered herself into his lap she whispered in his ear “I always wanted to make love in your chair.”  She bit down on his earlobe and he jolted.  “Oh, I think that can be arranged, my love.” 

###

Beverly and Jean-Luc were sitting up in bed, hands entwined, each reading a PADD held in their free hand.  Beverly put hers to one side.  “Jean-Luc, what do you think of marriage?”

“I think it’s a fine institution and a way for a couple to present themselves as a united front to the world, why?”

“Just wondering.”  Beverly went back to her PADD before putting it down once more.  “Jean-Luc, do you want to get married?”

Jean-Luc dropped his PADD. “Beverly,  I want nothing more than to marry you and make you my wife.  I love you.” 

“So then, why haven’t you asked me to marry you?  We’ve been together for a year...”  Jean-Luc turned so he was facing her on the bed and gently cupped her face . “Beverly, my love,  I would have asked you to marry me months ago if I had thought it was something you wanted.  But after what you had said about Jack’s proposal....I thought it best to wait until we started to discuss getting married instead of springing it on you.” 

“Jean-Luc?”

“Hmm?”

“We’re discussing it.” 

“So we are. So we are.”  Jean-Luc rose up on his knees in front of Beverly on the bed.  He clasped her hands in his and brought them to his lips, kissing each finger in turn.  “Beverly Cheryl Howard, will you marry me?”  Beverly smiled and nodded. “I’m sorry I don’t have a ring for you right now....”

Beverly rose to her knees and flung her arms around his neck. “I don’t care about rings.  Can we get married now?”

“You mean, right now? Or now in the sense of now we’re engaged so we can get married whenever we want?”

“Right now.” 

“Errr...Well, I suppose as soon as we get to Earth we could...” Beverly shook her head.  “No. Now.  You’re the Captain. Can’t you marry us?”

“As Captain,  I can perform wedding ceremonies,” Beverly grinned. “But I don’t think  I can perform my own.”  Beverly’s face fell.  Jean-Luc leaned over and gave her a deep kiss.  “But if you really want to be married right now, I think I have a solution.  We could call Walker and have him perform the ceremony over subspace....there’s nothing that says the Captain performing the ceremony has to be physically present...is that what you really want?”

Beverly had tears glistening in her eyes.  “Yes.  I want to be Doctor Beverly Picard, wife of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and I don’t want to wait until we’re on Earth or back on the _Stargazer_.”

“You don’t want me to be Captain Jean-Luc Howard, husband of Doctor Beverly Howard?”  Beverly wrinkled her nose.  “No.”

“But I thought it was tradition in your family for the women to retain the family name?” 

“My grandmother and mother did.  My dad was a Howard by marriage to my mom....but...no.  I think it’s time for that tradition to end.”  He kissed her again. “We had better put some clothing on if we’re going to speak with Walker today.” 

“Hmm. But then, the clothing come off again!” 

An hour later found Jean-Luc and Beverly, clad in their dress uniforms, exchanging wedding vows  and hastily replicated simple gold bands while Jean-Luc’s old friend, Walker Keel, performed the ceremony over subspace. 

“I have to admit, Johnny, I think you asking me to perform a wedding ceremony for you was just about the last thing I ever expected to hear from you.”  Jean-Luc grinned at the image of his friend on the large view screen on the Bridge.  “What can I say, Walker?  Beverly didn’t want to wait until we got to Earth.”  Beverly was grinning too.  “So, is it official now?  Will you file the relevant notice?”  Walker nodded.  “Good. Thanks, Walker.  I know you regretted introducing me to Jack.  I hope you can approve now?”  Another nod. “Beverly, if I had thought for a minute five years ago that you and Johnny would get married, I wouldn’t have hesitated to introduce you to him first.” 

“Thank you, Walker.  That means a lot to me.” 

“Anything for you, kid. Right, well, you two enjoy your honeymoon.  I don’t think you’ll be having much fun once you get to Earth.  I’ll see you next week? We’ll go out and celebrate your marriage properly.” 

“Of course, Walker. Picard out.”  The image of Walker Keel faded from view and Jean-Luc turned to his bride.  “Well,  I think this calls for a honeymoon.”  He kissed her tenderly before he scooped her up in his arms and carried her back into the bedroom.  He would have loved for their first time together as husband and wife to be gentle and slow, but once they divested each other of their uniforms they came together hard and fast in a hurried frenzy.  Slow and languid love making would have to wait. 

###

Jean-Luc entered the code for his apartment near Starfleet and made a mental note to give the code to Beverly before he scooped her up in his arms and carried her into the apartment.  Beverly laughed.  “Jean-Luc, what are you doing?”

“Isn’t it customary for the groom to carry the bridge over the threshold?  I admit, the apartment is rather sparse, but I suppose it’s ours now....unless you don’t like it.  We can get a bigger apartment...or a house...do you want a house?  We can buy a house...here...France...wherever  you want....ah....” Beverly silenced him with a kiss.

“Jean-Luc?”

“Yes, dear?”

“You’re rambling again.”

“Sorry, my love.”  Jean-Luc put Beverly down so she could explore the apartment.  Jean-Luc hadn’t been kidding when he told her it wasn’t much.  They were standing in a large open room consisting of a living area, an alcove with a desk, a dining area, and a small kitchenette.  Off to one side there was a door leading to what Beverly assumed was a bedroom, and another door was propped open leading to a bathroom.    “Jean-Luc, how long have you had this place?”

“Since I graduated from the Academy. Maman gave me the money for it as a gift...but we don’t have to keep it.  I’m not attached to it...and we have enough money to...well, you can have whatever you want.” Beverly’s eyes went wide.

“We?”

“Well, you’re my wife now...what’s mine is yours.  Since Robert and I own the vineyard between us, I have quite a bit saved up so we can buy whatever you want.”  He leaned down and kissed her.  “Did I say something wrong?”

“No.  I...Jean-Luc, I guess we never talked about our financial situations....I knew you owned part of the vineyard, but I never thought...and I hardly have anything, really.  Sure, I have the insurance money from my parent’s accident I’ve been living off of since I left Caldos, but....” Jean-Luc drew Beverly into his arms and held her close.  He kissed the top of her head. “Beverly, my love.  I don’t care how much or how little money you have.  Everything I have is yours. Please, let me share this with you.” 

“This will do for now. But if we plan on having any children we might want a house...”

“Children?  I hadn’t really thought about ever being a father.”  Jean-Luc contemplated fatherhood. His father had been awful towards him, but Jean-Luc felt he surely wouldn’t treat his own children the same and he would encourage them to follow their dreams.  He looked at Beverly.  “Beverly, I think if you want to have children with me, I will just have to learn how to be a father.” 

“And change diapers.”  Jean-Luc wrinkled his nose. “Couldn’t we hire a nanny to do that?” Beverly laughed. “Or perhaps as punishment for misbehaving crew members?”

“Now there’s an idea!”  Jean-Luc’s eyes twinkled.  “You know, I wasn’t a fan of having children on starships, but I can’t imagine being apart from you and if we have children, naturally that would include them...so I guess I’ll just have to get used to the idea of children on a starship....but just never on my bridge.” Beverly kissed his nose. “Deal.”

“I hear practicing to make them is fun...”

###

Jean-Luc was shocked to learn that the prosecutor for Jack’s trail was none other than his ex-girlfriend, Philippa Louvois.  “Beverly, I probably should warn you. Philippa and I dated when we were at the Academy...it didn’t end well.”  Beverly raised an eyebrow.  Jean-Luc didn’t really have much luck in his past relationships to begin with. Beverly thought she was familiar with all of Jean-Luc’s previous girlfriends, but she hadn’t known about Philippa. 

“What happened?”

“She issued an ultimatum when I wanted to go to flight training school with some of my friends.  Either I stayed with her at the Academy, or we broke up.  I went to flight school.”

“As you should have.  That was really stupid of her.  I suppose the one thing we have going is that she’s not his defence attorney!”

“No, but we’ll have to meet with her, and I wanted you to be prepared.”  Beverly patted Jan-Luc’s arm. “Thank you, love, but your wife is a big girl and she can handle the mean girls.”  Beverly curled up against Jean-Luc on the small sofa in their apartment still clad in her dressing gown.  She had her cup of tea halfway to her mouth when she realised something else. “Hang on.  Jean-Luc, did you say her name was Louvois? Is she Commander Louvois?”

“I think her rank is Commander, why?”

“Isn’t it a conflict of interest for her to prosecute Jack?  I’m sure Jack said he dated her briefly...”

“Oh?  So, he dated my ex, and I married his.  Huh.  How strange.” 

“I think you got the better deal.”  Beverly placed her tea down before she turned her head to kiss Jean-Luc’s cheek.

“I have to agree with you, my love.” Jean-Luc scooped her up in his arms and kissed her neck.  “Have I told you today how much I love you and how glad I am you decided to marry me?” 

“Mm.  Show me.”  Jean-Luc busied himself pulling on the single knot that was holding her gown closed and when he had it untied he laid her back down on the sofa.  He discarded his own robe and proceeded to show his wife just how much he was in love with her without using words. 

###

Beverly and Jean-Luc were meeting with Philippa to go over a few things before the trial and Beverly was nervous.  Sure, she had told Jean-Luc she would be fine around his ex, but the truth was, Beverly still felt a little intimidated to be around someone who knew Jean-Luc when he was younger.  Philippa seemed to glide into the room and greeted Jean-Luc with a kiss on the cheek and then turned to Beverly. “Cadet Howard, I presume?”

“Picard, actually.”

“I...see,” Philippa turned to Jean-Luc.  “Niece? Cousin?”

“Beverly is my wife.” Jean-Luc beamed. He really loved saying that.  Beverly hid her glee as Philippa tried to conceal her shock.   “Oh, and it’s Ensign Picard.  Beverly is currently in medical school, but graduated the Academy three years ago.”

“My apologies, Ensign Picard.  I wasn’t informed.” Jean-Luc casually draped an arm around Beverly’s shoulders. “It’s relatively new, Phil.  Walker married us last week.”

“Walker. I should have known.  You know, he’s down as a witness, too. I should tell you, Jean-Luc, Beverly...it’s not looking very good for Mister Crusher.”

“Phil, we’re not here to defend him.  The man beat me up after he found out I was dating Beverly and he’s exposed himself and harassed countless women.  As far as we’re concerned, there is no defence for him.”

“I’m glad you see it that way.”  Philippa glanced down at the PADD in her hands as she took a seat on one side of the long conference table. “Now, I think we had better get started, don’t you?”  She waited until Beverly and Jean-Luc had taken seats opposite her before continuing.  “How long have you both known Jack Crusher?”

“Five years, I met him when I was in my second year at the Academy.” 

“And you, Jean-Luc?”

“I’m trying to remember, Phil.  Possibly ten years?  Walker might remember better.”

“Did you meet Mister Crusher with Walker?”

“Yes, we met him at the same time.”  Philippa made a note on her PADD to check with Walker. “Now, Jean-Luc, in those ten years that you have known Mister Crusher, do you know how many women he might have harassed?”

“I’m sorry, Phil. I can’t say that I do.  I have the report from his time on the _Farragut_ though, and it mentioned more than a dozen.  Before he started dating Beverly, I probably saw complaints every few months from women on the _Stargazer_.”

“Why did you never put a reprimand on his record?”

“Honestly?  I hadn’t realised how bad it was.  I thought he had just asked girls out...it’s only been recently that I found out he was propositioning them as well.  I would imagine it wasn’t something the women felt overly comfortable coming to their Captain about.” Beverly spoke up. “No, they don’t. I’ve taken a few reports of harassment while working in Sickbay on the _Stargazer_ because women didn’t feel comfortable talking to a man about it. I always forward the reports to Jean-Luc, but if the women don’t come forward or if they downplay what happened, we just don’t know. There’s a large difference between being asked out on a date and being asked to have sex.”

“Yes, and your reports are much more thorough than if they had come directly to me.”

“Beverly, did you have any reason to believe that Mister Crusher was unfaithful to you while you were dating?”  Beverly’s eyes went wide and she reached for Jean-Luc’s hand under the table.   He gave it a squeeze. Jean-Luc threw a harsh glare at Philippa. “Phil, is that really necessary?”

“I’m sorry, but yes.”  Beverly took a deep breath. “I always knew Jack liked to look at other women...that didn’t come as a surprise,  but I would have thought he would have been faithful to me even when I was still at the Academy and he was on the _Stargazer_ ,”  She turned her head to look at Jean-Luc. “And I would have expected my best friend to tell me if he wasn’t.”

Jean-Luc shook his head. “Honestly, Beverly, if he was, I didn’t know.  Trust me, I would have been the one dealing out the punches if I had found out he hadn’t been faithful.”

“Thank you.”

“Fifteen women have come forward regarding the time period of 2344 to 2347.  Is that while you were dating Mister Crusher?” Beverly hung her head and a tear slipped out of her eye.  “Yes.” Jean-Luc pulled her against his shoulder and kissed the top of her head. “I’m sorry, Bev.  I honestly didn’t know,”  Jean-Luc turned to Philippa.  “Phil, can we have a minute?  I think Beverly needs some fresh air.”

“Of course. Take all the time that you need. I’m not a monster, you know . This has to be upsetting for you, Beverly.  I’m truly sorry.  If it makes you feel any better, I found out he had cheated on me when he and I dated briefly, too.”

“It just shows how much of a pig he really is.”  Jean-Luc stood and helped Beverly to her feet.  “Thank you Phil, we won’t be long.”  He ushered Beverly out into the hallway and pulled her into an empty waiting room. After closing and locking the door, he pulled her into his arms and Beverly began to sob.

“I’m sorry, Jean-Luc.  It shouldn’t matter. He’s out of my life and I’m married to you and I know I shouldn’t care, but...”

“It’s hard when you find out the person you once loved wasn’t the person you thought they were. “  Jean-Luc kissed the top of Beverly’s head. “I know, love, I know.  Please. Let it all out.  I’m here for you.  I love you.” 

“I love you too.”  Beverly lifted her tear stained face and caught Jean-Luc’s lips in a passionate kiss.  “I think I’m alright now, but do you think we could swing past a ladies room? I think I need to clean myself up.” 

“We could beam back to the apartment quickly if you want.”  She nodded. Jean-Luc tapped his ever present comm badge. “Captain Picard to Transporter Chief. Could you lock onto my wife’s and my signals and send us to our apartment building  and then beam us back in ten minutes?”

“Aye, Sir.”

“Thank you, Chief.  Whenever you’re ready.”  Jean-Luc and Beverly disappeared in a shimmer of light and reappeared in the lobby of their apartment building.  “Strictly speaking, I don’t think I’m supposed to do that, but I think this constituted an emergency.”  Beverly grinned as they made their way to the lift and up to their apartment.  Once inside, Beverly wasted no time in going into their bathroom and washing her face to remove all traces of her earlier tears.  She applied just enough make-up to conceal the fact that she had been crying and tucked her concealer into a pocket in case she needed it again.  “Alright, I’m ready to go back.” 

They re-entered the conference room and Jean-Luc was delighted to find that Philippa had ordered  tea and some sandwiches.  “I thought we could use some Lunch.  Beverly, are you alright?”  Beverly nodded. “Thank you, I’m fine now. I just needed....”

“I understand.”  Philippa poured out the tea. “I assume you’re still drinking Earl Grey, Jean-Luc?”  He nodded.  “Beverly, has he got you drinking that perfumed water too?”  Beverly laughed. “I can tolerate it, but I prefer Darjeeling or English Breakfast.” 

“Good.  I have a pot of Darj right here.  Would you like some?” 

“Yes, please.” Jean-Luc shook his head and Beverly stuck her tongue out at him. “Uncivilised, the pair of you.” Philippa chuckled.  “I’m really sorry, but we need to get back to the questions....Beverly, are you sure you’ll be alright?”

“Yes, thank you Philippa, I’m fine now.”

“Talk to me about him hitting you, Jean-Luc.” 

“Oh, Phil, do we have to?  Honestly, if we hadn’t needed to call security because Beverly was afraid he was going to kill me, I wouldn’t have reported it.  He didn’t hit me in the course of duty.”

“No, but you were both in uniform, and you’re the Captain. The Captain is never off-duty.”  Jean-Luc sighed and reached for Beverly’s hand once again. 

“Well, you know Beverly and I are married now.  We started dating about two months after she and Jack broke up.”  Philippa interrupted. “Beverly, would it be terrible of me to ask you why you broke up with him?”

“We had a fight.”

“Did he hit you?”  Beverly looked at her hand clasped in Jean-Luc’s.  She hadn’t told him. She hadn’t wanted to tell him.  She slowly nodded.  “ _Beverly!_ ”

“I take it you weren’t aware?”

“No, I was not. My love, why didn’t you tell me?”

“Jean-Luc...you don’t understand...it’s like we said earlier about women not wanting to talk to a male captain about being harassed...I didn’t want to tell my male best friend that his other best friend hit me.”

“Beverly, my father used to hit me.  And once I saw him hit Maman.  I understand, but...please don’t keep anything from me again.”  Philippa turned away from the couple to allow them some privacy.  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jean-Luc tenderly brush a strand of hair out of Beverly’s face before kissing her temple.  In all her years of knowing Jean-Luc Picard, she had never seen him act so loving towards anyone.  Tears brightened her eyes at the beauty of it and she quickly composed herself before turning back to her ex-lover and his wife. 

“So we have an established history with Jack and abuse.  He hit you, and you broke up with him.  A few months later, you started dating  Jean-Luc. Is that correct?”  Beverly and Jean-Luc nodded.

“Jack was sent back to me after eight months due to...well, you have all the reports.  The Captain of the _Farragut_ didn’t want to deal with him so sent him back to me...I’m assuming he thought that as a friend I would have better control over Jack?”  Philippa nodded. “Right, well, he came on board and after we exchanged pleasantries, I invited him to dine with Beverly and I that night.  He seemed surprised that Beverly was still on board, even though he knew she had come aboard for a work study program with Dr Greyhorse. 

“The evening started off fine, if a little awkward. After dinner, Beverly told him she had to tell him something  and he immediately asked if he had gotten her pregnant. Now, I know I don’t know a lot about pregnancy, but I’m pretty sure if they had broken up eight months prior, either Beverly would have been ready to give birth or there would have been a baby around.”  Philippa snorted.  “And then, we told him we were together and he...well, I can only describe it as he flew off the handle at me.”

“I see. Beverly, as a medical student, you tended to Jean-Luc’s wounds?”  Beverly nodded. “Could you detail for me what those wounds are? I have them in a report you made, but I’d like to hear it from you, too.  You may be asked to give this information again in court.”

“Jean-Luc was suffering from a broken nose, a shattered cheekbone, and multiple lacerations around the eye...frankly, I think Jean-Luc was lucky it hadn’t affected his sight.  Jean-Luc had some bruising around his throat, and I hadn’t even seen Jack touch him there.” 

“He did.  After he knocked me down, he placed a hand around my throat before he punched me in the eye.”

“Was there anything else?”

Beverly turned red and glanced over at Jean-Luc. “Yes,  he had bruising to the groin from a well placed knee or foot.”  Jean-Luc leaned over and patted her knee. “It’s alright, Bev. It’s your job to take care of your patients.”

“Beverly, the report says you tried to pull Jack off of Jean-Luc and Jack shoved you?  Were you hurt?”

“Not really.  I was maybe a little sore from the landing, but no lasting or visible damage.”

“Did he put up a fight when Security arrived?”

“Not that I noticed, did you, Bev?”  Beverly shook her head. “But then, I don’t know what happened after they left our quarters as I didn’t follow them.”

“I wouldn’t have let you.  You were bleeding!”

Philippa sighed.  “So we have twelve counts of harassment while Jack Crusher was serving on the _Farragut_ , fifteen while he was serving on the _Stargazer_ that we were made aware of after the fact, abusing his partner, and hitting a superior officer.  I don’t think there’s any hope for him.” Jean-Luc hung his head. “I wish I had known he had problems sooner...maybe I could have helped him.”

“No, Jean-Luc, I don’t think you could have.”

“Who knows how many other women he has harassed or worse . You know how I was when I was younger, Phil.  When Jack started bragging to Walker and I, we just thought it was bragging. We had both been young once and knew what it was like...but now I wonder what happened with those women, too.”  Beverly rested her head on Jean-Luc’s shoulder. “Jean-Luc, you aren’t responsible for Jack’s actions.  Please stop beating yourself up. He’s out of our lives now. Philippa will make sure of that.”

“Beverly, you can call me Phil. All my friends do.” 

“Ok, Phil. Thanks.”

“I still need to speak with Walker and with several of the women who have made claims, so the trial might not start for a few more weeks. I see you’ve both temporarily been reassigned so I won’t have to call you back.”

“Yes, they’ve given me a desk job at command and Beverly will be resuming her work study at Medical.”  Jean-Luc made a face. Everyone who knew Jean-Luc knew that he hated driving a desk. 

“Beverly, we’re giving all the women the option of skipping the trial to remain anonymous, but since you’re our witness for him hitting Jean-Luc....”

“No, I don’t want to hide.  I want to look Jack in the eye when I tell the judge every horrible thing he has done to me.”

“Good girl.”  Philippa stood up.  “Right then, I think we’re done here.  I’ll be in touch?”

“Phil, do join us for dinner one night.  We’re meeting up with Walker tomorrow. It would be good to get some of the old crowd together again.”  Jean-Luc smiled at his old friend.  “That sounds nice, Jean-Luc. Contact me with the details?”  he nodded as he stood and gave Philippa a kiss on the cheek. 

Philippa surprised Beverly by pulling her into a hug.  Philippa whispered in her ear “I’ve never seen Jean-Luc so happy before. You’re obviously good to him.”  Beverly smiled and whispered back “Thanks”. 

As they exited the room, Jean-Luc put a comforting hand on Beverly’s back and Philippa sighed inwardly. _I really messed up when I broke up with that man._

“Beverly, what did Phil whisper to you?”

“Oh, she told me she hadn’t seen you this happy before.”  Jean-Luc stopped walking and swung her around to face him before kissing her soundly.  “She’s absolutely right, my love.”

 

 

 

 

 

 


End file.
